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TEXT: John 14:8-9
SUBJECT: The Revelation of God
Many books have been written on the nature of God. From Stephen Charnock to James Packer, men have tried to identify the Divine attributes and to make us bow before them in sacred wonder. These books differ much in idiom and in length, but their content is roughly the same. It is distilled in the Fourth Question of the Westminster Shorter Catechism:
What is God?
God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal,
and unchangeable in His being,
wisdom, power, holiness, justice
and truth.
This summary is good as far as it goes. But it doesn't go far enough. Has it ever occurred to you: An Orthodox Jew or a devout Muslim would agree with every word of the catechism? And with much in the books I cited? It has occurred to me; it has left me deeply disturbed.
For Christianity differs from these other faiths on one central and non-negotiable point: God is supremely revealed in Jesus Christ.
This is the obvious meaning of our text. Our Lord has just promised to bring His disciples to His Father, God. This excites them to no end; understandably so. No one has ever seen God. Even Moses caught only a passing glance of Him. And now--at last--God will be revealed. And the Twelve will be the first to see Him! Philip can't wait for the blessing: "Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us". Our Lord turns to His eager friend with these words: "He who has seen Me has seen the Father". At the time, Philip must have been deeply disappointed. But later, he must have felt the glory. The disciples read the Old Testament Scriptures; they had the learned commentaries; they heard the Sabbath day sermons. Each revealed God; but "through a glass darkly". In looking at their Lord, however, they saw God "face to face". Consequently, it's no surprise that
"Many prophets and righteous men
have desired to see what they saw".
Such a pivotal doctrine mustn't be based on one text of Scripture, be it ever so clear. This one is not. Many others could be cited to the same effect. I offer a partial list.
The best known, perhaps, is John 1:18: "No man has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, Who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him". The English is inadequate to express this communication of Divinity. Lenski comments: "The Logos is the supreme exegete, the absolute interpreter of God. The verb means more than `to narrate or tell'; it means to expound or set forth completely". So thorough is His exposition of God, that even Moses takes the back seat to Christ. See the immediate context, John 1:17.
Another well known text is John 10:30: "I am my Father are one". The oneness of which He speaks does not refer to unity of purpose. If it did, His enemies would have no cause to charge Him with blasphemy as they did in v.33. They knew what He meant; Jesus Christ is the unique and supreme revelation of God. How could it be otherwise? Who can better explain what's in your mind: You or someone else? You can, of course. And, because our Lord and the Father are one, He can speak of God as no one and nothing else can. He speaks more clearly than "the heavens which declare the glory of God"; He speaks more fully than "the prophets of old"; He speaks more truly than the apologists and theologians of the Church. God is supremely revealed in no one but His Son.
The key word is "supremely". For many are willing to concede God spoke through Jesus. Nicodemus thought so: "We know You are a teacher sent from God" he said. The Pagans had no quarrel with this; they believed the gods revealed themselves in a variety of messengers; Jesus may well have been one. Muhammad believed He was a prophet. As have the heretics and unbelievers down through the ages.
But we mustn't settle for this squishy confession; God won't allow it. He demands we receive Christ as His Full and Final Word. How can He be improved upon? Colossians 2:9 tells us: "For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily". J.A. Bengel observes: "Not merely the Divine attributes, but the Divine nature itself". Donald Guthrie goes so far as to write: "It is because the fullness took on some visible form in Christ that it became knowable to man". A partial idea of God is revealed in nature; a fuller idea in the Scriptures of the Old Testament, but only in Christ is His "fullness" made known.
When you hear the words "glory of God" what's the first thought that comes to mind? To many, it is the earthquake at Sinai or the glowing face of Moses. This thinking is sub-Christian! The glory of God is supremely manifest in no one or nothing but our Lord Jesus Christ. As it is written:
1."And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth," John 1:14.
2."For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness Who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ", II Corinthians 4:6.
This "glory of God" refers to the Divine nature which we see perfectly duplicated in our Lord. A sampling must do for the moment.
"God is light and in Him is no darkness at all" says I John 1:5. What do we see in our Lord, but impeccability of character? His worst enemies couldn't say otherwise. "Which of you convicts Me of sin" is the challenge that goes unmet. One Who knew Him better than they had the same opinion: "This is My beloved Son in Whom I am well pleased". He is "Holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens".
"God is love" is the witness of I John 4:16. Can we find a defect in the Savior's love? Either in its depth or in its breadth? "Now Jesus having loved His own, loved them to the end (or to the full)". These were not easy men to love; they were quarrelsome; they were cocky; they were often numb from the neck up; they were mean-spirited; they were ever doubting. Yet none of them--not one--fall from His love. The circle of His love was also wide. He was vilified as "a friend of sinners". He gladly accepted the insult, receiving publicans, harlots, demoniacs, Samaritans, and anyone else who came to Him. He didn't just take them in, but welcomed them with open arms. The blessed sing of it: "Unto Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood".
If our Lord is unmixed light and unmixed love, it follows that He is unmixed God. Therefore, "He who sees Me, has seen the Father".
If this is true--if God is supremely revealed in Jesus Christ and nowhere else--certain implications would seem to followw. I will list five and leave their full development to another time.
1.If Christ is the supreme revelation of God, our interpretation of Scripture must be Christ-centered. "Search the Scriptures ...for they are they which testify of Me". Not in a typological sense in which--for example--the golden spoons in the Temple stand for our Lord's purity, and so on. But like this: Jesus Christ is great Actor in the unfolding drama of redemption. It is He who animates the prophets to speak God's Word; He who makes the priestly offerings atoning in their effect; He who rules by the Royal House of David. It is He who was behind the men who cut down the Giant and rebuilt the Temple. And He is not only the Actor, but the Object. He acts to bring glory--and His people--to Himself. Reading the Bible without Christ--Paul tells us--is like reading it "with a veil upon our hearts".
2.If Christ is the supreme revelation of God, our theology must be Christ-centered. The centerpiece of Scripture is neither "the covenant of grace" nor the nation of Israel. It is the Lord Jesus. "In all things He must have the preeminence".
3.If Christ is the supreme revelation of God, our ethics must be Christ-centered. The believer's rule of conduct is not the Law of Moses but the teaching and example of Jesus Christ. If you fear this will lead to sin, just recall its starting point: "If any man will be My disciple, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me".
4.If Christ is the supreme revelation of God, our fellowship must be Christ-centered. On what basis do we receive each other? Because we agree with each other on every point of doctrine? Because we're all immersed? Because we keep the Sabbath? Because we're homeschoolers? Many have made these things qualifications for fellowship. I think a better one would be mutual union with Jesus Christ. We receive each other because Christ receives us. "Therefore, receive one another as Christ also has received us to the glory of God" says Romans 15:7.
5.If Christ is the supreme revelation of God, our devotion must be Christ-centered. In our acts of public, family, and private worship Christ must pondered, felt, and loved. It's not about doing things or saying things or giving things; it's about knowing Someone, the Lord Jesus. Knowing Him as Prophet, Priest, and King; knowing Him as Friend, Brother, and Husband; knowing Him as our "all in all".
"This is life eternal, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ Whom You have sent".
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